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EDITORS’ NOTES

Dismissed almost immediately on release as a failed attempt to match Sgt. Peppers, for those with open ears and open minds, this has always been a terrific, if anomalously blues-free album, full of surprising turns and rewarding experiments in sound and imagery — as trippily luring as the lenticular 3D cover that graced the original LP. The sinister title is realized in the dark garage-rock psychedelia of "Citadel," "The Lantern," and especially the bleak space stranding of "2000 Light Years from Home," balanced by the unexpected utopian prologue of opener "Sing This All Together" (the chant and percussion core perhaps reflecting Brian Jones' stays in Morocco) and the gorgeous baroque-pop of "She's a Rainbow" (centered on Nicky Hopkins' piano). Even Bill Wyman's debut as a writer and singer on "In Another Land," drenched in opium-esque haze, fits the mood perfectly. Heck, even the indulgent jam "Sing This All Together (See What Happens)" is a legitimate period piece.

EDITORS’ NOTES

Dismissed almost immediately on release as a failed attempt to match Sgt. Peppers, for those with open ears and open minds, this has always been a terrific, if anomalously blues-free album, full of surprising turns and rewarding experiments in sound and imagery — as trippily luring as the lenticular 3D cover that graced the original LP. The sinister title is realized in the dark garage-rock psychedelia of "Citadel," "The Lantern," and especially the bleak space stranding of "2000 Light Years from Home," balanced by the unexpected utopian prologue of opener "Sing This All Together" (the chant and percussion core perhaps reflecting Brian Jones' stays in Morocco) and the gorgeous baroque-pop of "She's a Rainbow" (centered on Nicky Hopkins' piano). Even Bill Wyman's debut as a writer and singer on "In Another Land," drenched in opium-esque haze, fits the mood perfectly. Heck, even the indulgent jam "Sing This All Together (See What Happens)" is a legitimate period piece.